Door hinge



Dec. 27, 1949 F. G. HOMAN DOOR HINGE Filed Feb. 6, 1945 Patented Dec.27, 1949 nooa nner:

Frank G. Human, Sioux Falls, Dali.

Application February 6, 1945, Serial No. 576,403

This invention relates to concealed lau tt hinges, and pertains moreparticularly to hinges which are adapted to flee fixed between the edgeof a door andxthe jamb, and which are so arranged as to be whollyconcealed in the door joint when the door is in closed position.

omiriari such hinges :present the problem of arrangement :oi' a pivotstructure wholly within the fioint betweenthe door and jamb, which willmaths door to-swing open without interferonce: an h th'e" lamb and otherstructure surrounding the opening. Heretofore hinges have been proposed"comprising two main leaves one each of which is affixed to the door edgeand jamh respectively, and a pair of intermediate leaves hingedetogether along :one "pair of edges and to the respective leaves alongtheir other edges. While such hinges permit :the concealment-of thehinge and opening of the door, by reason of the flexible interconnectionof the two leaves due to the three pivotal connections between them,they .are not satisfactory. This is :due :to-the :fact that thefienibilit-y' of the hinge, due towthe nresenceof the three pivots,permits relative :motionlof the leaves that is uncontrolled anderratic,sinoe the door may move in various rectilinear directions andswing about any of the pivotal connections.

.10 iisincluded in the mechanism.

A tfurther important object of the invention is to providehinge/mechanism of the above character is simple in constructiomreadily.installedimioperative zposition, and one that may :1; be readilymanuractured and nlaced upon the market at :a reasonable zcost'.

' The'foregdingand otherohjects:andadvantages will ib'emeadilyzaipparentthroughout the course of the following description and drawing, inwhich,

Figure l :a perspective view of a hinge provided with: ithe'cntmtrolling mechanism forming sthe matter of. "the instant invention,

Figure :2 "is a front elevation of the hinge in "its-closed 55 3- iis a:bottom r al-an view of the hinge The primary important object of thisinvenso :compriaes a pair of :main leaves l and one .of

.tion is the provision of a novel and efiective mechanism in a'concealedbutt hin e, for mic-'- widing a rigidly controlled lateral movement of apivot-point about which 'the door may swing, to permit the pivot pointto be moved out of the door openingssufficiently so that the doormayclear the structure about the door opening as it swings.

,A viurther important object of this invention is to provide a -novelmechanism of the above character that will limit the swinging movementof the door to a substantially arcuate path about the movable pivotp-oint as a center, thereby .producingamovement that closely resemblesthat of a door swung on a conventional butt hinge with pivot pointssupported laterally of the door and clear of the :orpen-ing.

' Another important object of this invention is to provide-a mechanismof the above character which includes an assembly of links and levers soconnected to the leaves as to convert swinging movement of thedoor-carrying leaf so as to impart to the inner edge of the leafalateral movement that will, during swinging of a door .supportedaon theleaf, carry the door to a point will permit it to swing about the edgeof the shown in Fig. 1, and

Figure 4 :is 'a plan view of the'lxinge'shown M112;

in detail to the drawing, the :hinge which may be .iaedtoa iamb and theother to theed'ge of a door that is :to be swung from the "lie the inneredge :01 each leaf, I, 2, is pivoted the end of one of :a patriot levers3, A, as Joyimeansof pins 5 around which the marginal portions :of the:leaves are beat, as at t. The lovers 3 and '4 are :disposed between theleaves and are-pivoted together a pin l. The levers areinrfiaee'toriaeearrangement and are extended iheyond their piyotal connection, formingcrossed lovers the portions of lying beyond the {pivotpoint-arelconnected through links "to intermediate nontions of theleaves opposite to the ones to their inner ends respectively arepivoted, Thus'z'a link :8 is pivoted to the lever 3 and to the leart 12.The end of the lever A is connected-ihy a linkQ to an intermediateportion of leaf I. Y

ii is :of special form, comprising a sec- :tion sl'ilthat is pivoted tothe leaf I between the upperandleweredgesioithe latter, and :a sectionII one end of which is pivotedtorthe end of the section 2120 and whichsection it is also pivoted iimermed iatei ts ends tothe end of lever *4.lhe sections ll) hi iof'iliiik '9 are "in race to face arrangement andthe section I I is in face to face relation with lever 4, which latteris in turn in face to face relation with lever 3, the latter having thesame arrangement relative to link 8. Section II is extended beyond thelever 4 and at its free extremity the section is bifurcated so as toform a fork I2 which defines a slot I3. The inner edge of section Itcarries an upstanding flange I arranged along the over-lap between thesections I0 and II, which flange forms a stop to limit relative swingingmovement of the two sections and causes them to act as a single rigidarm following contact between the edge of section II and the face of theflange, when contact therebetween occurs during swinging movement of theleaves away from each other. The link 9 is normally urged outwardly awayfrom the leaf I by a spring 9 and in addition is effectively a togglearm that is pivoted to an intermediate portion of the leaf I. Lever 3,pivoted to the edge of leaf I, which is also the leaf to which thetoggle link 8 is pivoted, carries at its distal end a projecting pin Iwhich depends at right-angles thereto, and which is arranged tocooperate with the bifurcated end I2 of section II by entering the slotI3 and bearing against one or the other of the walls defining its sides,depending on the direction of swinging of the leaves, to thereby swingsection II! so as to bring the two sections to linear arrangement duringopening movement of the leaves, and to break the toggle joint duringtheir closing movement.

The various elements of the link and lever system are so arranged upontheir various pivots, and the latter are so arranged relative to eachother, that the elements lie in parallel relation when the leaves areclosed. With the hinge disposed in a vertical closed position, theelements form a vertical stack, the sides of which are arranged alongplanes that are parallel to each other and to the inner faces of theleaves. It is one feature of this mechanism that the leaves are broughtinto parallel relation when the hinge is closed, insuring properregistration of the door with the opening within which it is swung bythe hinge.

In operation, and assuming the hinge assembly to be in closed position,Figure 2, with the hinge leaf I secured to a door jamb (not shown) andwith the hinge leaf 2 secured to a door (not shown), initial outwardswinging of the leaf 2 about its associated adjacent pivot 5, will causethe leaf 2 and connected door to tend to move bodily outwardly of thedoor frame while at the same time to swing in an are about the saidassociated and immediately adjacent pivot 5 until the leaf 2 andattached door has reached the open position of the parts, as shown inFigure 1 of the drawings, and in which latter posifrom the wall definingslot or notch I3 formed in the free end of section II of link 9. Suchopening movement may then continue at least until the leaves I and 12are parallel and aligned.

The action thus described is the direct result of the construction andinterconnection of the leaves, links and levers forming the generallylazy tong system hereinbefore set forth.

Thus initial opening or separative movement of the leaf 2 with respectto leaf I will create a pull through link 8 upon the free part of lever3 to which it is attached.

Continued swinging movement of lever 3 about the pivot 5 associated withleaf I will then cause separation of the pivots '5 due to the fact thatlever 4 is pivoted at one end to the pivot 5 of tion. the depending pinI5 has become disengaged leaf 2, at the intermediate pivot I to lever 3and at its opposite end to section II of link 9 which is in turnconnected to leaf I.

The purpose of the link 9 composed of sections In and I I, is to preventor overcome any tendency of the parts to become locked on dead centerduring closing movement of the door.

Thus when the leaf 2 has been moved a predetermined distance toward theleaf I in the closing movement of the parts, the depending pin I5carried by lever 3 will strike one leg of the forked or slotted end I2of section II of link 9 and will thereafter cause the joint betweensections It and I I to break in a direction so that the abutting edge ofsection I I will move away from upstanding flange I0 carried by sectionIII. As the pivotal movement of sections I0 and II continues, force isapplied to leaf 2 through its pivot 5 and the link 4 to insure smoothcollapsing movement of the parts.

It is believed to be obvious that swinging movement applied to eitherleaf relative to the other will result in the operation of the partsjust described.

The result of these two movements is that the opening and closingoperations of the door are approximately that of a door that is swung ona conventional type butt hinge, while the present hinge has the furtheradvantage of being fully concealed between the door and jamb when thedoor is closed.

The arrangement as described above is of itself capable of performingthe functions of both hinge and controlling mechanism. However, in someinstances it may be desirable to swing the door on a hinge that includesa more conventional type of concealed hinge structure and use thedescribed system for controlling the action of the hinge, therebyrelieving the controlling system of the weight of the door.

' To this end, the main leaves may have interposed between them a pairof intermediate leaves I6 and II, the outer edges of which may berespectively pivoted to the same edges of the main leaves as are thelevers 3 and 4, as by having marginal portions bent around the pins 5 atI8, in alternation with similarly bent portions IQ of the main leaves.The inner edges of the intermediate leaves are pivoted together by aconventional type of hinge joint 20, which is coaxial with pin I. Inthis structure the hinge provided by the main leaves and intermediateleaves serves to carry the weight of the door, while the link and levermechanism operates as described above to control the relative movementof the main leaves.

It is to be understood that the form of my invention herewith shown anddescribed, is to be taken as a preferred example of the same, and thatvarious changes in the shape, size and arrangement of parts may beresorted to, without departing from the spirit of my invention, or thescope of the subjoined claims.

I claim:

1. In a butt hinge comprising a leaf formed for connection to a doorjamb and a door-carrying leaf formed for connection to the edge of adoor; motion-controlling pivot means connecting the leaves comprising apair of levers pivoted together between the leaves and each being alsopivoted to an edge of one of the leaves, a pin carried by the free endof one of said levers and extending at right angles thereto, and a linkpivoted to each leaf between the edges thereof and also to the leverthat is pivoted to the edge of the other leaf, one of said links beingformed with a notch for receiving said pin when the motion-controllingpivot means is actuated toward door-closing position, whereby pressureexerted by the pin-carrying lever is transmitted through the notchedlink to assist in moving the leaves together.

2. In a butt hinge comprising a leaf for fixing to a door jamb and adoor-carrying leaf for fixing to the edge of a door; amotion-controlling pivot mechanism connecting the leaves comprising apair of levers crossed between their ends, the said levers being pivotedtogether at their crossing point and each havin an end pivoted to theedge of one of the leaves, a downwardly extending pin carried by one ofsaid levers, and a pair of links one each being pivoted respectively toone of the levers outwardly of their crossing point, and to the leaf towhich the other lever is pivoted, one of said links comprising a jointedtoggle arm having a notched free end to receive and to be engaged bysaid downwardly extending pin when the leaves are moved towarddoor-closing position.

3. In a butt hinge comprising a leaf for fixing to a door jamb, adoor-carryin leaf for fixing to the edge of a door, and a pair of leverspivoted to each other and to the edges of the respective leaves; amotion-controlling link pivoted to each of the levers and to the leaf tothe edge of which the other lever is pivoted, one of the said linkscomprising a toggle arm having a joint between its pivotal connectionswith the leaf and the lever.

4. In a butt hinge comprising a leaf for fixing to a door jamb and adoor-carrying leaf for fixing to the edge of a door; a pair of leverspivoted respectively to the edges of the respective leaves and pivotedtogether, a motion-controlling link pivoted to each of the levers and tothe leaf to the edge of which the other lever is pivoted, one of thesaid links comprising a toggle arm having a joint between its pivotalconnections with the leaf and the lever and being adapted to be lockedin open position as the leaves are separated, and means carried by thelever that is pivoted to the same leaf as the said toggle arm forcontacting the said arm and breaking the joint as the leaves are swungtogether.

5. In a butt hinge comprising a leaf for fixing to a door jamb, adoor-carrying leaf for fixing to the edge of a door, and a pair oflevers crossed intermediate their ends and pivoted together at theircrossing point, each of the said levers having an end pivoted to an edgeof the respective leaves; a link pivoted to one of the leavesintermediate its edges and to the lever pivoted to the other leaf, atoggle arm pivoted to the other leaf and the other lever and arranged tobe straightened out to form a rigid link that cooperates with the firstlink to control relative motion of the levers and leaves as the leavesare swung apart, and means carried by the lever that is pivoted to thesame leaf as the toggle arm for contacting the said arm and breaking thetoggle joint as the leaves are swung together, the link, levers, andtoggle arm sections being arranged successively along the axes of thepivots, and the pivots being so arranged as to move the said elementsinto parallel superposed relation as the leaves are swung together.

6. In a concealed butt hinge comprising a pair of main leaves forsecuring to a jamb and a door respectively, and a pair of intermediateleaves pivoted together along meeting outer edges and respectivelypivoted to the main leaves along inner edges; means for laterally movingthe pivot between one of the intermediate leaves and a main leaf andswinging the said main leaf about the said pivoted edge when a swingingforce is applied to the said main leaf, said means comprising a pair oflevers pivoted to the edges of the main leaves to which the intermediateleaves are pivoted, and pivoted together coaxially with the pivotbetween the intermediate leaves, and a link pivoted to each of therespective levers, each link also being pivoted to the main leaf towhich the other lever is pivoted, one of said last named linkscomprising a toggle arm having a joint between its pivotal connectionswith the leaf and the lever.

'7. In a concealed butt hinge comprising a pair of main leaves forsecuring to a jamb and a door respectively, and a pair of intermediateleaves pivoted together along meeting outer edges and respectivelypivoted to the main leaves along inner edges; means for laterally movingthe pivot between one of the intermediate leaves and a main leaf andswinging the said main leaf about the said pivoted edge when a swingingforce is applied to the main leaf, said means comprising a pair oflevers pivoted to the edges of the main leaves, the said levers beingcrossed and pivoted together at their crossing point coaxially with thepivot between the intermediate leaves, and links pivoted to therespective levers, each link being also pivoted to the leaf to which theother lever is pivoted, one of the links being jointed between itspivotal connections with the lever and leaf, the outer end of the saidlink extending beyond the pivot to the lever, and the lever that ispivoted to the same leaf as the said jointed link extending beyond itspivot to the other lever and having a surface arranged to contact theend of the jointed link and break the joint of the link as the leavesare swung toward each other.

8. In a butt hinge comprising a main leaf for fixing to a door jamb, adoor-carrying main leaf for fixing to the edge of a door, a pair oflevers pivoted to each other and to the edges of the respective leaves,a motion-controlling link pivoted to each of the levers and to the leafto the edge of which the other lever is pivoted, one of the said linkscomprising a toggle arm having a joint between its pivotal connectionswith the leaf and the lever, and a pair of auxiliary leaves pivotedtogether and connecting said main leaves, the pivotal connection betweenthe auxiliary leaves being substantially coincident with the pivotalconnection between the levers.

FRANK G. HOMAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 865,895 Hewitt Sept. 10, 1907941,672 Canfield Nov. 30, 1909 1,754,341 Tevonian Apr. 15, 19302,074,112 Homan Mar. 16, 1937 2,135,280 Erickson Nov. 1, 1938 2,144,977Jacob Jan. 24, 1939 OTHER REFERENCES Ser. No. 368,949, L. Cencioni (A.P. 0.), published April 27, 1943.

